


Class Reunion

by DancesWithCybermen



Series: The Next Files [3]
Category: The X-Files
Genre: F/M, Family, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Humor, Parenthood, Sex, Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-22
Updated: 2020-02-22
Packaged: 2021-02-28 02:00:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,273
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22842151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DancesWithCybermen/pseuds/DancesWithCybermen
Summary: Written for the X-Files Fluff Exchange. Serahsanguine wanted a post S11 Mulder-Scully family holiday, complete with Jackson and their baby girl. Here’s what I came up with: Jackson has been accepted into Oxford University. The summer before he begins his studies there, Mulder decides to take the whole family to visit on one of their Open Days. While this takes place within The Next Files “universe,” you can dive into it and figure everything out without reading the previous stories.
Relationships: Fox Mulder/Dana Scully
Series: The Next Files [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1000158
Comments: 14
Kudos: 54
Collections: X-Files Fluff Fanfic Exchange (2020)





	Class Reunion

**Author's Note:**

  * For [SerahSanguine](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SerahSanguine/gifts).



> Researching this story made me want to visit Oxford! There is a hotel in the city based on the one in the story, but I changed the name and took artistic license with the details. I've never been to the UK, so I hope I didn't mess anything up.

**Heathrow Airport - June 2019**

“We’re really not going to rent a car?” Jackson watched as the driver loaded the family’s baggage onto the bus. His birthparents were seasoned travelers who knew how to pack light, but it was hard to minimalize with an 8-month-old in tow. Lily needed more stuff than the three adults combined.

“We walk, take the bus, or ride a bike. We can get free bikes from the hotel.” Seeing Jackson’s dumbfounded expression, Mulder chided, “That’s the way it is here. People don’t drive as much as they do at home. You’d better get used to it.”

As he boarded the bus with his family, Mulder could barely contain his excitement. He hadn’t been to England in years, and he hadn’t visited Oxford since he’d graduated. Now he was taking his grown son, who would be entering Oxford in the fall, to visit the university where he’d be spending the next three years. He had been elated when Jackson had gotten his acceptance, and even happier when he saw that they could attend one of the university’s Open Days in the summer. He decided to make an entire week out of it. It would be the last chance for them to have a family vacation before Jackson left for college.

Looking over at Scully, who was cooing to their wide-eyed and curious daughter, he was already imagining a family Oxford dynasty of sorts. Apparently reading his mind, his wife raised an eyebrow at him. “Lily can make her own decision when it’s time for college.”

“I agree, but there’s nothing wrong with giving her an early introduction to the benefits of an Oxford education!”

“Mulder, she’s a baby. She doesn’t even understand where we are.”

Jackson looked at Lily, then at Mulder. “She understands that you’re excited and happy about something.”

They took their seats, with Lily in her mother’s lap, Mulder next to her, and Jackson in the seat directly across the aisle from them. Mulder envied Jackson’s special connection with Lily. It was something that even Scully didn’t share completely. Jackson had explained to them that Lily’s thoughts were more impressions of feelings, though she understood her own name and a few words here and there. 

“She’s also wondering where the dog is,” Jackson said. Lily loved the family’s German shepherd. King had assumed the role of protector from the moment they’d brought her home, and he could often be found lying beside the child’s crib as she slept.

Mulder missed King, too. He’d brought his running shoes, and he wished he could have brought the dog and taken him on some runs, like he did at home. Would he be able to make time to retrace some of his favorite routes through the city? Would the routes still be there? Probably. As much as things changed in this place, they also tended to stay the same.

**Lord De La Warr Hotel - Later**

Mulder talked pretty much non-stop on the 90-minute ride to Oxford, pointing out various locations on the way and regaling Jackson (and everyone else within earshot) with tales of his college days -- including stories he’d already told multiple times. It had begun as soon as Jackson received his acceptance letter. He’s talked more about Oxford in the past six months than he did in the previous 25 years, Scully thought.

Scully hadn’t been familiar with Oxford before Mulder had suggested the trip, and she had been pleasantly surprised to discover all of the things there were to do in the city, most of them family-friendly. She knew she wanted to take Lily to the Oxford Botanic Garden. Now that her eyesight was maturing, she’d been enjoying their yard at home; the flowers and wildlife at the garden would undoubtedly delight her. And of course Scully wanted to visit the science and natural history museums.

Mulder appeared to want to show Jackson every single location in the city where he’d spent at least 30 seconds. The young man just nodded, obviously more engrossed in texting his girlfriend. Isabella would be attending St. Andrew’s College, which was apparently only a couple of hours away from Oxford. Scully was happy that the young couple would have some separation; she wanted them both to grow and mature before making long-term relationship decisions, and she knew Isabella’s parents felt the same way.

Mulder finally took a breath when the bus dropped them off near their hotel, and Scully saw an opportunity to get a few sentences in. “Mulder, maybe Jackson has his own ideas about sightseeing.”

Jackson grinned. “I want to go to a pub! It’s legal here!”

Mulder clapped his boy on the shoulder; Scully rolled her eyes. At least their son had become more like a typical teenager in the little over a year he’d been living with them.

The Lord De La Warr Hotel was a luxurious but quirky choice. The centuries-old building had once housed a prison, and the rooms were referred to as “cells.” Mulder had been drawn to it for the ghost stories; Scully had been enamored by the large clawfoot tub and drench shower in their “cell.” Jackson had his own “cell,” connected to theirs through an adjoining door.

Inside, the clerk wore a name tag reading, “Front Desk Guard.” 

“Is this your first time in Oxford?” the chipper young man asked as he pulled their information up on the computer.

“No, I attended the university years ago!” Mulder responded. Scully sighed. She was exhausted from the trip and wanted nothing more than to soak in that clawfoot tub, preferably with a nice glass of wine. She sincerely hoped Mulder wouldn’t talk this poor clerk’s ear off.

Thankfully, the clerk was used to chatty tourists and got them through the check-in process quickly, cutting Mulder’s college stories short without appearing as if he were cutting the older man off. The family was soon on the way to their “cells,” accompanied by a “bell guard” who helped them with their luggage.

“Well, aren’t you a cutie?” the bellhop said, smiling at Lily.   
  
“Yee vee!” Lily said back. “Yee vee yee vee!” Never a quiet baby, she’d been vocalizing frequently, strongly preferring long “e” sounds.

Scully braced herself for the perennial question: “Is this your first grandchild?” But the bellhop simply exchanged some more nonsense talk with Lily, then showed the family to their suite. A rolling crib had already been placed in the larger “cell.”

After the bellhop had gone, Jackson disappeared into his room to unpack. Scully handed Lily, still babbling, to her father and collapsed onto the bed. “I think I could sleep for the next 17 hours.”

“What? We just got here, didn’t we, Lilypad?” Mulder bounced his daughter in his arms, and she giggled and babbled. “And it’s not even noon. We should walk around and explore.”

Scully groaned and stared at the ceiling. She couldn’t believe her husband and daughter were not only awake, but raring and ready to go. “Why don’t you take Lily and Jackson exploring the city, and I’ll explore the room service menu and the tub?”

Mulder put Lily in the crib with one of her toys and sat down next to Scully on the bed. “You’ll adjust to the time difference more easily if you stay awake. Come on, let’s go downstairs and get some lunch.” Scully groaned again and tried to hide in a pillow, but Mulder was relentless. He pushed her hair aside and planted soft kisses on the side of her neck. “Since we’re in a jail, maybe you can restrain me. ”

Scully peered out from under the pillow. “If you’re not a good boy, I’ll have to.”

“Oh, I think I’ve been very, very bad, warden!” He began to snake his hand under her shirt, but pulled it back when he heard Jackson knock on the adjoining door. “Come in!”

“So are you guys -- JESUS GOD!” Jackson covered his eyes. “What has been seen can never be unseen.”

“Yes, I’m sure you’re forever traumatized by the sight of your fully-clothed married parents lying on a bed,” Mulder said, sitting up. Lily squealed and held out her arms to her brother. Scully stayed under her pillow, hoping her family would decide to leave her alone. It didn’t work; Mulder grabbed one of her arms and tugged, and she sat up, pouting. “Your mother needs some oxygen and coffee before we lose her for the rest of the day. Let’s go get some lunch.”

“Wine, Mulder. His mother needs some wine.”

“So does that mean we can go to a pub?” Jackson asked. He picked up Lily and frowned. “Do they let babies into pubs around here?”

Mulder nodded. “The pubs here aren’t like American bars. People go there to socialize, not just drink. They have family rooms where you can take children. You don’t want to buy wine there, though. It could have been sitting around for days. You go to a pub, you get pints, not wine.” Jackson grinned again, and Mulder tugged on Scully’s hand. “Come on, sleepyhead, let’s take your son for his first legal drink.”

**Later**

Mulder had been right. Scully felt far more awake once she’d walked around for a bit and gotten something to eat. The “desk guard” had recommended The Pig’s Purse, located a short walk from the hotel. Mulder was in his element, explaining pub culture and etiquette to Scully and Jackson and buying a round. They spent the remainder of the day leisurely exploring the area near the hotel, which was absolutely lovely, before having dinner in the hotel’s restaurant and retiring back to their “cells.” Tomorrow was Open Day at Oxford, and it was going to be hectic.

Her daughter fed, changed, and tucked in her crib, Scully stripped, sank back into the bubble bath she’d prepared, and closed her eyes. The tub was enormous, she’d been looking forward to this all day, and she was going to enjoy every moment of it.

Mulder came into the bathroom and started removing his clothing. Scully cocked an eyebrow. “And what do you think you’re doing?”

“I’ve been a really bad boy today, Scully,” he teased. “What with corrupting a minor by taking him into a pub.”

“He’s not a minor over here, Mulder.”

“Just work with me here, Scully.” 

She admired his naked form; he looked delicious. He’d been fucking ripped on their babymoon the year before, and he’d gotten even bigger since. His upper body was rock-solid. “What if Jackson needs something?”

“I told him that unless there’s blood or an alien invasion involved, he is not to knock until morning.” He climbed into the tub with her, splashing water all over the floor.

“Mulder!”

“See, I deserve punishment, Warden Scully.” He settled in behind her, his erection pushing into her butt, and slid his hands up to her tits. Scully had always had very sensitive breasts, and they’d gone on overdrive during her pregnancy. Breastfeeding Lily had made them sore for a while, but now that the baby was weaning, the demands on them were less, and it felt good for Mulder to touch them again. He gently squeezed her nipples, testing her response, and she rewarded him with a moan.

“This better be REALLY fucking good, Inmate,” Scully hissed.

“Oh, I’ll fuck you good, Warden,” he whispered in her ear as he slid one hand down between her legs. He gently rubbed her clit with one hand while the other squeezed her nipple, and she stiffened against him, stifling her cries so that she wouldn’t wake the baby in the next room. With a full house, they’d had to learn to have quiet sex. 

Soon, Scully ached to have her husband inside her. She pushed his hands away, flipped around, and held his wrists down as she grinned and maneuvered herself to mount him. She teased the head of his cock with her slit. “Tell me how sorry you are for pulling me out of bed earlier, Inmate.”

“I’m sorry, Warden Scully.”

She held herself in position, not yet granting him entrance, just rubbing her slit against his head in exquisite torture. “I don’t think you really mean that, Inmate.”

“Oh Warden,” he gasped, “Oh, but I do.”   
  
“Then ask me nicely. Say please.”

“Oh god, please Sc -- Warden Scully. Please fuck me!”

She slid down on him, and he gritted his teeth to keep himself from crying out. They had to move slowly so as not to make too much noise in the water. We should have thought this out a bit better, Mulder mused in a lucid moment, but the slow buildup drew out the pleasure. Soon, Scully contorted her face and gasped, her body shuddering, and Mulder followed her moments later. She collapsed on top of him, spent.

Half the water was on the floor, but neither one of them cared.

**Oxford University, The Next Day**

Oxford Open Day was as hectic as the university had warned it would be. Oxford University didn’t consist of a centralized campus but a series of buildings spread out all over the city. A great deal of walking was involved as they attended events and toured the various buildings that made up the school, Mulder pointing out the things that had stayed the same since his college days, as well as the things that had changed.

Mulder insisted on stopping in the Oxford Shop. After gearing up himself, Jackson, and Scully, he bought Lily a beanie bear wearing a shirt that said “Little Oxford,” as well as a onesie that read “Born to Go to Oxford.” 

Lily, who was strapped to her father’s chest in a sling, grasped the little bear with glee. “Bee bee!”

“See Scully? She’s already excited about going to Oxford like her old man and her big brother!”

Scully was happy to get this glimpse into Mulder’s past, as well as pleased to see that he was recalling the positives. Before Jackson had revealed he’d gotten accepted into the school -- he’d applied without telling either of them -- Mulder had spoken little of his time there. Scully hadn’t probed; she didn’t reminisce about her own college days that often, and she knew it had been a tumultuous time for Mulder. He’d mentioned going abroad for college in an attempt to escape his toxic home situation.

Around midday, they stopped for lunch. As they prepared to sit down at their table, Mulder sniffed Lily. “Ew, I think she needs changed, Scully. Can you hand me her diaper bag?”

Scully held out her arms. “I’ll take her, Mulder. You’ve been carrying her around all morning, and I have to use the ladies’ room, anyway.”

*******

When she entered the ladies’ restroom, Scully found herself in a small foyer with a baby changing station, separated from the toilets and sinks by a door. After changing Lily and getting her cleaned up, she strapped her to the front of her chest and went into the toilet area. She made casual note of a woman, her head wrapped in a scarf, standing over one of the sinks, but thought nothing of it until she exited the stall, and the woman was still there. It looked like she was bracing herself on the countertop, trying not to vomit, fall over, or both.

Scully doctor mode kicked in. She ran water to wash her hands and tried to catch the woman’s eye in the mirror. “Ma’am, are you all right? I’m a doctor.”

The woman nodded. “Yes,” a shaky, English-accented voice managed to get out. “Yes, I think so. It’s nothing, really.” The woman looked up at her. It took a few moments, but her eyes widened in recognition. “Agent Scully?”

Scully blinked. The woman looked somewhat familiar, but her features were puffy, distorted, and the scarf concealed a bald head. Chemo, Scully thought, and then she realized who she was looking at. The sick woman was Phoebe Green.

“Wow,” Phoebe said, trying to straighten up. “I’m sorry. Really. I didn’t mean to bother you.” This was a quite different woman than Scully remembered, the young, vibrant one full of sass and bravado. This woman looked beaten down, and not just by cancer. Still, she was trying to maintain a sense of dignity.

“It’s okay, Phoebe. You don’t look good. Would you like me to call someone?”

Phoebe shook her head. “My daughter is meeting me here soon. I told her to go on ahead on her tour. She’s -- I just don’t want her seeing me like this. She’s gotten into medical school, you know.” Scully saw genuine pride in Phoebe’s eyes. “I can’t get anything past that one. I don’t want to ruin her day. I just -- I need a minute.”

Scully pulled out her phone and nodded. Phoebe Green or not, this woman didn’t look well, and Scully didn’t feel comfortable leaving her alone just yet. She could fall and hurt herself on the tile floor. “Let’s go sit down in the changing area. I’ll just text Mulder and let him know I’m going to be a few minutes.” She saw Phoebe grow pale. “I won’t tell him why.”

“Thank you.”

*******

After they sat down, Phoebe started to regain her equilibrium. She smiled at Lily, and the baby smiled back. “She’s beautiful. Is she your granddaughter?”

Scully laughed. “No, my daughter. Our daughter. She was a surprise. Her name is Lily.”

“Well, I am so pleased to meet you, Lily.”

“Pee Bee!”

“She likes long e sounds,” Scully explained. She looked from Lily to Phoebe and then back to Lily again. Now that she was sitting down with this woman, she had no idea what to say to her. “We’re here with our son. He just turned 18, and he’ll be coming to school here in October. Computer science.”

“Fox must be so excited!” Scully just nodded, and Phoebe continued. “Agent Scully, I really am very sorry for how I acted back then.”

“It was a long time ago--”

“That doesn’t make it right.” Phoebe seemed firm. If this is a mind game, Scully thought, it’s a damn good one, because this woman is clearly expending all her strength just to be sitting here. “It’s breast cancer. Stage 4. Mets in my lungs and spine.”

“I’m sorry,” Scully said quietly. She knew what the diagnosis meant. Once breast cancer metastasized, there was no cure. The chemo would hopefully buy some time. Some patients got a lot of time, but most of them lived less than three years.

“This is my second round with this. Elisabeth was only five when I first got diagnosed,” Phoebe went on. “My ex-husband, he married me because I was pregnant. We didn’t get along. We fought all the time. When I got sick, I had to go through the whole regimen: mastectomy, chemo, radiation. He told me he didn’t sign up for all this shit. We haven’t seen him since.” Scully didn’t know what to say. Phoebe shrugged. “You live the way I lived, you end up with what I have now. I got what I deserved.”

Scully shook her head. “No Phoebe, no. You didn’t deserve cancer. It just happened. I had cancer too, nasopharyngeal. I didn’t deserve it, and neither do you.” She put her hand on the ill woman’s shoulder. “You made a bad relationship decision, but your ex didn’t just walk out on you. He walked out on your daughter. He should have stayed and helped you out, just for her sake. What a piece of shit!”

Phoebe laughed bitterly. “I should have known better. He left his wife for me. You know the old saying, get ‘em that way, lose ‘em that way.” She looked down at her hands. “I’ve raised Elisabeth to be different than me. I want her to be better than me. I don’t want her cheating, and lying, and sneaking, and dating married men, and shitting on nice men like Fox.” She gave Scully a level look. “I knew that he loved you all those years ago, the way he looked at you. He deserved someone nice, someone like you, not someone like me. Please tell him I said I’m sorry, and that I’m happy for both of you.”

Scully thought for a moment. She really didn’t want to leave Phoebe alone; the other woman still didn’t look well, and Scully preferred to wait for Phoebe’s daughter to collect her. “Why don’t you tell him yourself?”

*******

Mulder was taken aback when Scully texted him to say that she’d run into Phoebe Green in the bathroom, and that she was going to briefly join them at their table. True, it had been nearly three decades since he’d seen the woman, and he hadn’t given her more than a few fleeting moments of thought in all that time. But if Scully said she was joining them, there had to be a damn good reason.

The picture became more clear when Scully came back to the table with a woman Mulder barely recognized. In fact, if he hadn’t known to expect Phoebe, he might have walked right by her without even noticing. They were the same age, but Phoebe looked about 10 years older than him. Cancer treatments, Mulder thought, seeing the headscarf and the face puffed out from corticosteroids. Damn.

When Mulder introduced Phoebe as one of his former classmates, Jackson gave him the side-eye but knew better than to push it. Whatever had gone on between his birthfather and this woman in the past, it wasn’t bothering his birthmother now; she seemed far more concerned about Phoebe’s health than anything else. The group chatted amicably, Phoebe sipping water as the family ate their lunch.

They were about halfway through their meal when a tall young woman with olive skin and dark curly hair approached their table. “There you are, Mum! I was so worried when I didn’t see you out front! Are you okay?”

“Yes Elisabeth, I just ran into some friends. This is Fox and Dana, their son Jackson, and their daughter Lily. Fox attended Oxford the same time I did, and Jackson is starting this fall.”

“Oh, you’re the American! Mum has spoken very highly of you!” Elisabeth looked at her mother critically. “I think I should get you home, Mum.”

“No, dear. I’ll be fine. I just needed to sit down for a minute. Why don’t we get a table and eat something?” Phoebe wasn’t sure she could keep anything down, but she knew she had to try if she didn’t want her headstrong daughter to take her back to London. She was enjoying her visit; it was nice to go someplace that didn’t involve medical tests, examinations, or treatments.

Elisabeth wasn’t convinced, but she knew her mother was as stubborn as she was. She set off to find a table, and Phoebe decided to try to stand. She knew it could take a minute or two. When Mulder saw her struggling, he got up to help her. As she braced herself on him, he felt how thin and frail she had gotten. “I’m going to see Phoebe to her table,” he told Scully, and she nodded.

Once they had moved out of Jackson’s earshot, Phoebe looked up at Mulder. “I’m sorry Fox, really. You deserved better than me, and I’m glad you got it.”

Mulder sighed. “We were just kids, Phoebe.”

“I wasn’t a kid when I looked you up at the FBI.” Elisabeth was waiting for them at their table, and Phoebe made a point to let go of Mulder and walk on her own, albeit slowly. “She’s going to be a better person than me. She hardly even dates. She studies all the time. She wants to be an oncologist. My marriage didn’t work out, but I got Elisabeth out of it. She’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”

Mulder nodded. When they got to the table, Phoebe gave him a quick hug. “Thank you, Fox. Take care of yourself.”

“You too, Phoebe.”

*******

**Lord De La Warr Hotel, that evening**

Mulder and Scully sat on their bed, sipping beer from the minibar and watching the TV on mute as Lily slept nearby. “I still can’t get over what happened to Phoebe,” Mulder said. “In a million years, I’d never have thought she’d change.”

“Cancer can change you,” Scully said solemnly, recalling her own experience, “but I think parenthood changed Phoebe even more. I think when she was left alone with her little girl, she realized that the world didn’t revolve around what she wanted anymore. She had to straighten out her act for her daughter’s sake, and she did.”

“But then some people get cancer, or have kids, and they’re the same assholes they were before the cancer or the kids,” Mulder mused. He glanced at his sleeping daughter. “I was an asshole when Jackson was born, and we missed out on 17 years of his life because of it.”

“No, we were in a horrible situation when Jackson was born, and that’s why we missed out on 17 years. But we have him now, and we have Lily now, and that’s what we agreed to focus on that day in the church, what we have now.”

“Mmmmmm.” Mulder put his beer down on the nightstand and cuddled up to his wife, who put her drink down and turned to face him. “Shall I draw you another bath, Warden?”

“No, what I have in mind can’t be done underwater,” she purred, licking her lips.

She was right, Mulder thought later, as they lay wrapped in each others’ arms. They would have drowned.


End file.
